A report examined the implications for social housing providers of the coalition government's proposed 'reforms' of housing benefit. It said that unless the £26,000 annual cap were indexed for inflation the affordable rent model – where social landlords could set rents at up to 80 per cent of market rate – would not work for larger homes. Plans to pay housing benefit to tenants rather than landlords would lead to an increase in arrears and larger borrowing costs. Measures designed to clamp down on under-occupation would require the rebuilding of the equivalent of 7.5 per cent of total rented stock as 1-bedroom properties by April 2013.

Source: The Impact of Welfare Reform on Housing, CASE (Consortium of Associations in the South East)

Links: Report | Inside Housing report

Date Created: 31 Jan 2012